Team USA morning session quotes from Day 2 of World Indoors

3/8/2014

Morning Session

Chris Carter, Men’s triple jump qualifying

“I’m happy to get into the finals and keep our legacy going and try to medal. We’ve been doing that since 2011 and I want to keep that up. I need to do a better job during warm-ups. I didn’t want to get too tired doing too many approaches, so I left my marks where they were but if I can get on a roll, I can adjust. I didn’t need to jump that far today, so tomorrow I have today’s round under my belt and I won’t need to worry about not knowing how it’ll go.”

Omo Osaghae, Men’s 60mH heats

“Felt really good. It was obviously a very early morning for us, so you want to just get through the first round and get a good qualification time, work on the technical aspect of your race. It felt good to get off of the ‘practice, sitting, sitting, practice’ routine” and finally get on the track and do something. I feel good.”

Dominic Berger, Men’s 60mH heats

“I executed my race plan. We’ve been here all week. I’ve been sitting in my room just itching to get out here. I got out here and executed. It was good to get my first race under my belt. I felt great today. This track is awesome. Just happy to get the first race out of the way.”

Michelle Carter, Women’s shot put qualifying

“My plan is always to be one and done. I wanted to get my throw and come back to prepare for tonight. It should be a great show tonight. There are a lot of strong women in the final and I’m ready.”

Jeneva McCall, Women’s shot put qualifying

“It’s a milestone. It’s the first world finals in the shot put for me. A lot of people think I’m exclusively but I’m showing I can be a shot putter too. The main thing is getting adjusted to the ring because for spinners, it’s hard. They have to get adjusted is rough and it’s built for a glider. Rehearsing in my mind, I have to be either faster or more patient. I have the speed, I have the power but my leg is not getting through. That’s something I need to get back to the hotel and work on.”

Tianna Bartoletta, Women’s 60m heats

“It felt really good. I love this track. I love the bounce you get from it. It’s really crucial to get those first race nerves out of the way at a big championship like this. I wanted to get a good run in so I could look at some video tonight, make some minor adjustments and execute the same way tomorrow but faster. In terms of Istanbul, I think comparison is my worst enemy right now. I have a new coach and I’m just trying to look forward and improve from where I am right now.”

Lakeisha Lawson, Women’s 60m heats

“It felt good. I wasn’t that focused at the start because the hold was really long and it took me out of it a bit. Tomorrow, I need to stay more focused in the beginning. So once I started, I felt good and I felt fluid. I think I’m ready for the semi.”

Clayton Parros, Men’s 4x4 heats (1st leg)

“I was happy to finally get to run. I’ve seen everyone else compete and prepare coming up to today. Got out there and I felt like I wanted to get out there faster and win the break. It’s tough in lane 6. You can’t see anyone out there. Coming around the last 100, I knew I could catch Jamaica but I wasn’t expecting the move from Poland. So I was a little surprised. But I knew I’d get these guys in good position, so I did what I had to do and handed off the stick. It was a great experience. This is my first senior team. I’m looking forward to more of these in the future.”

Ricky Babineaux, Men’s 4x4 heats (2nd leg)

“Coming from a well-experienced team like Texas A&M, it helps a lot. You’re competing on a big stage and a lot of these guys, I’ve competed against at NCAAs and to come together means a lot. It’s an amazing feeling to represent your country. The experience was awesome. Knowing you’re in the race, you’re still relaxing. Yes, there’s someone in front of you but you’re not losing the race for 400 meters. You just sit and wait. I put myself in the second lane to force myself to do what I’m supposed to do. I have good foot speed so coming into the home straights, I knew I could pressure (Jamaica). Just running smart and being patient.”

Kind Butler III, Men’s 4x4 heats (3rd leg)

“The indoor 4x4 is kind of like a game of chess. It’s all about strategy. So I let the Jamaicans get in front because, honestly, I’m still learning how to run an indoor 400. So I stayed behind him until it was time to make my move. At that point, I just tried to move as fast as possible. I want to break the world record, so hopefully we can do that tomorrow.”

Calvin Smith, Men’s 4x4 heats (4th leg)

“Kind did a good job to put a space between us in first. So I figured if he did that work to get us ahead, I could put a little more. The team in second, if they really wanted to get us, they’d have to do a lot of work to catch us. That was my game plan. The only advice I gave these guys was to understand what to expect and what not to do. I was on the team two years ago that almost got DQ’d, so I just made sure it wasn’t going to happen again so we can get to gold.”

Erik Kynard, Men’s high jump qualifying

“The track is really fast so I tried to adjust as the competition went on. Now I know I don’t have to work as much (on speed). Feels good to qualify for my first World Indoors final and now I need to get back, get some rest and focus on tomorrow.”

Dusty Jonas, Men’s high jump qualifying

“I’m obviously really disappointed with my performance today. We’re all using the same surface so I can’t make excuses but I really expected better. I’ve changed my approach recently and I’m still getting used to it. I’m looking forward to outdoors and improving on that and seeing where that takes me.”

Tori Polk, Women’s long jump qualifying

“It’s been a blessing to be here, and to make our team says a lot. The ladies that competed out there today are spectacular. It was a strong group of jumpers. I’m happy to have made the final. I need to adjust a little to the speed of the track. I felt a little flat. But I’ll be ready and I feel so blessed to have made the final.”

Tori Bowie, Women’s long jump qualifying

“First time making a World team, my experience here has been good. I just need to go back and get myself ready and focused for outdoors.”

Women’s 4x4

Natasha Hastings, Women’s 4x4 heats (1st leg)

“I felt pretty good. Led off the team. I wanted to get out front, run a clean race and get a good start for us.”

Jernail Hayes, Women’s 4x4 heats (2nd leg)

It’s always exhilarating to put on this USA uniform. Run strong, run hard and bring it in.

Cassandra Tate, Women’s 4x4 heats (3rd leg)

“It feels good to put the uniform on and run with these ladies. Natasha and Monica have been doing this for years. I’m having fun and I’m so happy to be here.”

Monica Hargrove, Women’s 4x4 heats (4th leg)

“This is a great crowd and we were able to feed off them too. We did what we needed to do. Natasha had a great start for us and it helped us stay out front. We’re all really proud to represent Team USA and ready for tomorrow.”